Growing Up
by FatManDan
Summary: A prelude to the coming sequel to Captain Stoppable's Revenge. We follow Hana Stoppable along with friends and family in a series of shorts taking place during the 1930's.  Rated T for occasional implications.
1. Chapter 1

**1933**

"Ki-i-im! Baby Maybe is in my room again!"  
>Ron Stoppable, formally known as Arch Stanton these days, looked up from his typewriter.<br>"Do you want me to take care of it?"  
>"No." His wife groaned as she got up from the couch where she'd been dozing. "I'll deal with them. Besides Hana called for me anyway."<br>Kim went upstairs and found the two daughters of the household locked in a struggle.  
>Hana was trying to shove Mabel out while the six-year old fought to remain in her older sister's room.<br>"All right girls, what's all this about?"  
>"Maybe was in my room and..."<br>"Her name is Mabel. You're both too old for baby talk, Hana, and you know it." Kim interrupted.  
>"Mabeh!" Mabel said.<br>"Mabel. L-l." Hana corrected her sister out of sheer habit.  
>Mabel blew a raspberry and quickly hid behind her mother in case her older sister got angry enough to try and hit her.<br>"Really, Hana, I don't see what the problem is? Mabel just wants to play with your toys and you don't use most of them anyway."  
>"But..."<br>"Ah-ah! No buts! Is it really so hard to let Mabel play with your old toys? Or for you play a little with her?"  
>Hana looked grumpy, knowing that Kim was right, even though it was frustrating.<br>"Now, what was it you wanted to say, dear?"  
>"But the door was locked!"<br>"The door was what-now?" Kim's eye widened in surprise.  
>Behind her Mabel realized she was probably about to get in trouble and tried to edge away.<br>"Oh no, you don't young lady!" Kim grabbed her daughter and made sure she staid.  
>"The door was locked and when I opened it to get my book Mabel was already inside." Hana explained.<br>"You didn't lock her in earlier, did you? By accident, I mean?"  
>"No! She was...I don't know. Playing with her dolls or something in her room."<br>Kim turned to Mabel and hunkered down to face her daughter.  
>"Were you in Hana's room, sweetie?"<br>Mabel nodded.  
>"And the door was locked?"<br>Mabel looked very guilty but nodded again.  
>"Tell mommy how you got in. I won't be angry. I promise."<br>"I climbed like you did."  
>Kim blinked. So did Hana.<br>"Like_ I _did?"  
>"Yes, on the choo-choo train. In Shina."<br>"It's China." Hana immediately corrected.  
>This time it was Kim's turn to look guilty.<br>Both Hana and Mabel loved hearing Kim tell stories about her adventures in China when she was younger and a few days ago she had told them about how she had fought off assassins on a train en route to Macao, years and years ago.  
>During that fight she had climbed along the side of the rail road car by clinging to the window sills by the tips of her fingers.<br>"Mabel, honey..." Kim began. "Show mommy where you got in."  
>Mabel took her mother by the hand and led Kim back inside Hana's room, all the way to the window.<br>The window was open.  
>"You didn't?" Kim exclaimed.<br>Mabel just nodded.  
>Kim opened the window wider and peeked out.<br>Hana had hurried back to Mabel's room and looked out the window there.  
>Between the two windows there was a narrow ledge.<br>"Let me see your hands, honey."  
>Mabel did as she was told and sure enough, the hands were stained by red paint. The same type of red the house was painted in.<br>Kim straightened up and pondered what to do now.  
>What Mabel had done had been dangerous. And impressive.<br>Kim was torn between concern for the safety of the kids and being proud of the daring deed.  
>"Are you gonna tell daddy?" Mabel asked, looking worried.<br>Hana joined them.  
>"Yeah, are you?"<br>Kim cleared her throat, stalling for time while thinking about what to do.  
>If she told Ron he was likely to get all worked up. He could be such a mother hen when it came to the safety of his loved ones.<br>He was also likely to demand that Kim stopped telling the girls of her adventures for fear of giving them more dangerous ideas.  
>Neither Kim nor her daughters looked forward to that prospect.<p>

She loved telling the stories and the girls loved hearing of the daring exploits and adventures in foreign lands.  
>"Okay. Here's what we're going to do, girls. We are going down to daddy and tell him what happened."<br>Both the girls gasped, throwing each other glances of concern.  
>An angry daddy was <em>not<em> fun.  
>"We...we are?" Hana said.<br>"Yes we are. You mustn't lie to your parents, girls."  
>Kim suddenly smiled. It was a mischievous smile.<br>"But we don't need to tell daddy everything, do we? Only the important, true stuff."  
>She winked, which looked odd since her other eye was missing and she wore an eye patch.<br>Hana and Mabel grinned in unison. They understood perfectly well.

All three females of the Stanton household went downstairs again.  
>"There! All done." Kim said. "Mabel was in Hana's room, playing with her toys again. We had a little talk and that should be the end of that."<br>Ron turned away from the typewriter.  
>"Well, girls? Have you learned your lesson now?" He asked in his mock-stern voice.<br>Both his daughters nodded and smiled like little angels.  
>"Yes we have, daddy."<br>"No more shouting and fighting over toys, right?"  
>"No, daddy."<br>Ron smiled and pulled his girls in a hug.  
>"That's my little sweethearts!"<br>After the hug he got up from his chair.  
>"You girls run along and wash your hands. I might was well make dinner."<br>Hana and Mabel nodded and raced each other to the bathroom.  
>Ron laughed.<br>"Those girls, they can be a handful. But they're good kids."  
>He put his arm around Kim's waist as they walked to the kitchen.<br>"Sure, they squabble but at least they don't get into any dangerous foolishness."  
>Kim nodded but didn't elaborate on the topic.<br>"Let's hope it stays that way."


	2. Chapter 2

**1935**

The phone rang.  
>Ron sighed as he ambled over to the newly installed device.<br>"Why did we even get one in the first place?" He complained.  
>"Don't look at me." Kim said with a 'told you so'-grin. "You're the one who said it was the 'way of the future', honey."<br>"Ugh, don't remind me. " He picked the phone up. "Stanton residence."  
>Kim soon heard Ron's voice changing in tone for the worse. Apparently it was bad news.<br>"Mhm. She did?" A pause. "I understand. Yes. I'll see what I can do. Indeed. Thank you, Sir. Good bye."  
>He hung up.<br>"Who was it?"  
>"It was the principal at the Upperton Boarding School for Girls."<br>"Uh-oh. Hana?"  
>"Apparently she's been in a fight with some other girls."<br>"So? Teenage girls get into fights all the time."  
>"A fist fight."<br>"Oh. Yes, I see how that can be a bit of a problem."  
>Kim thought about what her husband had said before she went on.<br>"Did Hana win?"  
>"By the sound of it, yes she did."<br>"Good girl." Kim chuckled. "I taught her well."  
>Ron didn't look quite as amused.<br>"I don't think it's a laughing matter. We need to go to Upperton it seems."  
>"What? Right now?"<br>"Yes. Mabel can stay at Heinz's for the day I'm sure. We'll be home before nightfall, if you drive."  
>"If <em>I <em>drive, hunh? You think I drive too fast?"  
>"I didn't say that. And you don't know about driving fast unless until you've had Eddie behind the wheel."<br>"Hmph, we'll see about that."  
>"Just get us there alive, please, Kim?"<p>

Kim did get them to Upperton alive and possibly in record time.  
>"Want to come with me?" Ron asked.<br>"No, I'll just wait here. Should I leave the engine running?"  
>"Very funny, Kim. I'll try to keep this brief."<p>

As Ron arrived and made his way up the stairs to the principal's office, Hana was becoming increasingly concerned.  
>She wasn't worried about the principal or the other girls or even of possibly getting expelled, but she was afraid that her father would yell at her.<br>She knew he wouldn't spank her. He would never, ever do that.  
>But having him angry was scary. So very scary.<br>His warm, brown eyes would turn hard. His voice that always so easily turned to laughter and kind words would become a harsh, ugly thing that made her feel tiny and all alone.  
>When the principal's secretary announced:<br>"Mr. Stanton is waiting, Sir" Hana wished she could sink through the floor and disappear.  
>In the waiting room, Ron had noticed three other school girls, all showing signs of having been through quite a brawl.<br>The girls' parents were there too and threw hostile glances at Ron but they said nothing.  
>Ron made a point of ignoring them.<br>Eventually the secretary asked for Ron to step into the principal's office.  
>"Ah, Mr. Stanton. How good of you to come on such a short notice."<br>"There seems to have been a disturbance?"  
>The Principal nodded.<br>"Yes. And not the first one either, I'm afraid."  
>Ron nodded. He looked to Hana who sat very quietly and tried her best not to be noticed.<br>"Go outside and wait in the car, Hana."  
>His tone was curt but not angry, at least not yet. Hana did the best of the situation and hurried out, her head hanging low.<p>

Ron returned his attention to the man behind the desk.  
>"Now, what exactly has happened?"<br>"You cut right to the chase, Mr. Stanton. I appreciate that. As I told you over the telephone, Hana was in a fight with three other girls."  
>"Over what, if I may ask, Sir?"<br>The principal cleared his throat and adjusted his tie.  
>"It's a matter of Hana's, shall we say, general behaviour. She simply does not act as one would expect from a girl and that makes her stand out. To some, this is seen as highly provocative."<br>Ron frowned slightly. He was not a man to take criticism of his children lightly.  
>"Please do elaborate, principal. In what way does Hana's behaviour differ from what's expected? Is she rude? Lazy? Does she skip classes?"<br>"No, no. Nothing of the kind. But Hana persists in carrying herself more as a boy would. Even though she does wear the school uniform, she walks like she was wearing trousers. Most of the girls here wear, well, feminine shoes with a heel. Hana does not. She insists on wearing shoes with a low heel. She's brash, outspoken and very opinionated which really isn't suitable for young ladies. That short hair of hers also tends to aggravate her tomboyish demeanour."  
>Ron nodded silently.<br>"And how did this fight begin?"  
>The principal sighed.<br>"The three girls, from very good families of very high standing I might add, decided to...confront Hana with their opinion on her attitude."  
>"Confront, you say?"<br>The principal fidgeted. He was getting unnerved by Ron's calm but faintly intimidating tone. Although phrased as questions, his comments came across as orders and the principal got the impression that Hana's father was a man who would not brook any disobedience.  
>"Yes, confront. There might have been a few harsh words. Maybe a little push or two..."<br>"So the girls started the fight?"  
>"I wouldn't put it exactly like that but..."<br>The principal's shrug told Ron all he needed to know.  
>"So what do you propose, Sir?"<br>"To be honest, Mr. Stanton, if Hana doesn't conform to the standards of this school I may be forced to take it up with the disciplinary board. And I strongly suggest you would consider instilling some proper ladylike values in Hana, Sir. If Hana's disruptive attitude does not improve I might have to consider expelling her, you see."  
>Ron was silent for quite some time and it was only when the silence threatened to become embarrassing that he spoke again.<br>"I don't think expelling Hana will be necessary."  
>"You will talk to her then?"<br>"No. I'm taking her out of this school." Ron got up from the chair and put his hat back on. "My daughter does not need to be told what is 'ladylike' or 'proper', nor does she need to be bothered by cowardly little girls without the courage to take her on one-on-one. And she certainly does _not_ need to be disciplined for defending herself. I will send for her things during the week. Good day to you, Sir."  
>Without waiting for any reply, Ron turned and stalked out of the office. As he passed the three girls in the waiting room he stopped for a moment.<br>Then, to the outrage of the girls' parents, he did not offer any apologies on behalf of Hana.  
>"Maybe you girls should learn how to fight?"<br>With that we went back out to his waiting wife and daughter.

Outside Kim and Hana sat in the car.  
>"Do you think daddy'll be very angry?" Hana asked.<br>"I don't know. Why don't you tell me what happened and I'll answer that question later?"  
>"Brooke, Ashley and Diane came up to me and started talking trash to me again."<br>"Again? They did it before?" Kim frowned.  
>"Yeah, a little. You know, giving me a hard time, how I cut my hair short and the way I walk and talk. Then they kind of called me some nasty things. So I told them where to go."<br>Kim nodded, approvingly.  
>"Then Brooke pushed me and told me I should 'know my place' and said I didn't belong in this school. So I pushed back, you know. So Ashley grabbed hold of me and Diane slapped me."<br>"Go on." Kim was already getting upset on behalf of Hana but she kept her temper in check.  
>"So I kicked Diane in the crotch and slugged Brooke a good one. And I think I might have head butted Ashley on the nose. Then they ran away all boo-hoo and stuff. And I was dragged to the principal almost right away after that."<br>Hana had straightened herself up while she retold her fight to Kim.  
>It was quite clear that she wasn't in the least bit sorry for defending herself and that made Kim proud.<br>She put her arm around Hana's shoulders and hugged her.  
>"I don't think you have to worry about your daddy at all, honey. You did good, just like I taught you. Never take any guff from anyone, Hana."<p>

A few moments later Ron joined his wife and daughter in the car.  
>"Let's go home."<br>"Uh...dad? Are you mad at me?"  
>"Mad at you? No, not at all honey." He smiled, that smile Hana loved so much. "I just decided that maybe boarding school isn't for you."<br>Kim raised an eyebrow.  
>"But what about her education? I thought you wanted something a notch or two above the municipal schools?"<br>Hana had to agree.  
>"Yes, daddy? I mean I still need to go to school, right?"<br>"We'll find a way." Ron kissed Hana on her forehead. "Now, Kim?"  
>"Yes?"<br>"Let's see if you can race sundown all the way home."  
>Kim grinned.<br>"Let's hit the road!"


	3. Chapter 3

**1937**

Hana enjoyed classes with Mr. Fu.  
>After she had been taken out of the Upperton Boarding School, her dad had arranged for her to have a private tutor.<br>Mr. Fu was an academic from Manchuria who had moved to USA just after the Russo-Japanese war in 1905.  
>He was a tall, lean man with high shoulders and a face slightly reminiscent of the Devil in a theatre play. Although his calm and polite demeanour gave an impression of great humility it was obvious that he possessed a giant intellect, suffused with the knowledge of the most modern science and the secrets of ancient lore and myth.<br>At first Hana had been confused by his eccentric ways and methods but she soon got used to his style of teaching.

Of course, some of it was the same as it was in all schools, everywhere. Math and grammar was mostly a matter of initial cramming before they could be put in context through proper use.

When it came to disciplines such as history, politics, philosophy and, to a lesser extent, geography Mr. Fu often taught by asking questions, forcing Hana to put her mind to finding the answers through her own reasoning.  
>Occasionally her teacher would go off on what seemed like a tangent and speak at length of experiences from his many travels all over the world. At first she assumed it was the ramblings of an old man and although she enjoyed the various, and often surprisingly adventurous, stories she hadn't bothered to try to remember any details.<br>It was only after Mr. Fu would whip out a sudden test or present her with a series of questions that she understood that the stories were part of the education.  
>It soon became an informal game of wits between them. Mr. Fu would try to sneak in important lessons and clues in their everyday chats while Hana took pride in being able to answer his later questions with as much accuracy as she could.<br>The theoretical parts of chemistry, biology and physics were quite tricky for Hana but once Mr. Fu started to put things into context by various experiments she took to the studies with greater ease. Even here he would tell stories but sometimes Hana suspected he didn't tell her everything, as if there were things he had done that he didn't think suitable for his student to hear or learn. Although slightly irked by this, Hana was kept busy enough to prevent her from actually push the issue.

enjoyed teaching Ms. Stoppable.  
>Although her official name was Hana Stanton, Mr. Fu's contacts in Asia and elsewhere had soon revealed that she was really Hana Stoppable and her father was the former pirate, Captain Ronald Stoppable.<br>It did not bother him. He appreciated people with secrets and pasts full of intrigue and exploits.  
>At first he had been wary of taking on a student. He was not much impressed with the learning capabilities of people these days, despite the many marvels of modern science.<br>After a while he realized that there was more to her than first impressions would give away.  
>She was a tall girl for her age, slender and fit, not quite a woman. Her dark hair and eyes spoke of her Asian heritage but the faint freckles on her cheeks and her long legs revealed that her father's blood ran thick in her veins as well. It was obvious she would become a creature of astonishing beauty once she matured into womanhood.<br>But looks were mere window dressing to a man such as Mr. Fu. The mind was what truly made a person real.  
>The mind and the will.<br>What he first dismissed as typical childish energy and impatience in her eventually proved to be something else altogether.  
>Every time there would be a break in studies and he would go for a cup of tea or simply rest his voice and smoke his long pipe, Hana would get up and walk about the library, looking at the books and artefacts on the shelves.<br>Only after some time did it occur to him that her restless nature did not stem from lack of interest in her studies but from vast, untapped reservoirs of not mere intellect or physical prowess, but something else as well.  
>It did not take long for Mr. Fu to search his memory and his library and find the key to the mystery.<br>Young Hana was a natural conduit to the mystical powers of the spirit world.  
>Although not a master of the physical aspects of such things, Mr. Fu knew full well how to slowly open the gates to a new world for his young student.<br>There had been others, before him, who had begun to tap into this power. The Si-Fan, the Yamanouchi Society and, indeed that dread Burmese sect, the Disciples of the Black Sutras for example.  
>This was the first time in his long, long life that Mr. Fu had encountered an individual, rather than a school of mystic arts, who was so closely connected to the mystic world.<br>True to his nature, he decided to let Hana discover things by herself and observe the results.

"I didn't know you had books about dancing, Mr. Fu."  
>The Manchurian scholar looked at Hana over the rim of his tea cup.<br>"What makes you think it is a book about dance?"  
>"Well, I can't read all the Chinese ideograms."<br>"Why can't you read them, Hana?"  
>"Because they're this really, really old kind of writing, Sir."<br>"Very good. Now tell me how you reached the conclusion that the book is about dancing."  
>Hana smiled. She knew it. The old book Mr. Fu had left for her to find was part of one of his tests.<br>"There are pictures of footsteps in the book, just like you find in dance manuals. And I know that this sign means 'stance' or 'pose', this means 'turn, and this means 'finish'. So it seems reasonable that it is a book about dancing."  
>Her teacher nodded quietly and sipped at his tea.<br>Hana knew that glance.  
>"There's more to it, isn't there, Sir?"<br>"Mhm. There certainly is. You are not entirely wrong. It is a book written by the great mystic and warrior-poet, Chan Kong-san. It is about the harmonious movement of the body. But not in harmony with mere music."  
>Hana thought about this for a moment.<br>"Aha, so it's kind of like those religious boxing techniques they have in China and Japan?"  
>A soft chuckle escaped her teacher.<br>"It is indeed such an art. But it is also a philosophy of the body which will in turn make your body and mind harmonize."  
>This time Hana chuckled.<br>"And what is so funny, Hana?"  
>"You sound like Kim. She always talks about how the mind and the body sort of float together in a fight."<br>"Would you say she is wrong?"  
>"No. No I don't think so. I mean I haven't been in fights nearly as much as she has. Or dad. But I can hold my own!" She grinned and assumed a pugilistic pose which caused both student and teacher to smile. "Anyway, I sort of know what she means. You sort of stop thinking and you do the right things anyway, as if you already knew what was going to happen."<p>

"Perhaps you should heed your father's wife in matters of battle, then? She seems quite wise."  
>Mr. Fu got up from his chair.<br>"You may borrow this book if you wish to follow the instructions and learn from them. But it is now half past six and it is time for you to go home."  
>Hana never could figure out how Mr. Fu always could know what time it was with such accuracy even though he did not have any clocks in his home but she knew he was correct even before she looked at her own watch. He always was.<br>"I will be really careful with it, Mr. Fu. And I promise I'll practice every day until I know the moves by heart. I can harmonize, just you wait and see!" She boasted confidently.  
>Her teacher smiled.<br>"There might be a test to that claim, young Hana."

"I know, but this time you won't catch me by surprise, Sir." Hana grinned.  
>Teacher and student said their good byes for the day.<br>Mr. Fu watched her as she walked down the street back to her home.  
>"<em>One day, Hana Stoppable, the path you choose in life will test you."<em> He thought.  
>He was quite confident in her, the last student of Fu Manchu.<p> 


	4. Chapter 4

**1938**

"Do I _have_ to wear a dress?"  
>"Yes, it won't kill you to wear one once every three years or so."<br>Hana muttered and grumbled some more but eventually dropped the issue. Kim had used her 'determined voice' and Hana knew better than to argue so she tried a different angle.  
>"I'm not sure I even want to go, you know." She said, trying to sound indifferent. "Shaun might be there and he's a jerk."<br>Kim looked up from braiding Mabel's hair.  
>"What have I told you, Hana?"<br>"That...I should kick is hiney if he was mean?"  
>"And do you know how to do that?"<br>"Yeah, I mean, you taught me stuff and so did Mr. Fu and..."  
>Kim nodded.<br>"Good girl. So you can't use that as an excuse. Never let anyone give you grief, Hana. I think your dad and I raised to better."  
>Hana crossed her arms in surrender.<br>"Fine." She said with a petulant pout.  
>Kim smiled to herself.<br>"Besides, if you don't go you won't be able to meet Joss."  
>"You know what? I think I do want to go, now that you mention it."<br>Hana practically grinned with anticipation as she went to help her father pack the last of the suitcases into the trunk of the car.

The drive to Montana was quite lengthy and fairly tiring. Ron was the only one who could suggest going by train without getting in trouble with Kim and he had stopped doing that a long time ago, so drive they did.  
>The Possible ranch was large enough to hold the many members of the two families and had become the place of choice for the gatherings over the years.<br>When they arrived they were met by Kim's uncle, Slim.  
>Slim and Joss had moved to Montana from Texas when Joss' mother had died in the last outbursts of the Spanish Flu in 1920.<br>Despite having lived in Montana for close to two decades, Slim remained a typical Texan: larger than life, hard working, loud, hearty and hospitable. His greetings were no exception and it was a slightly dazed Hana that went looking for her best friend.  
>Jocelyn Possible, Joss to friends and family, was Kim's cousin and two years older than Hana. Both Joss and Hana were tomboys, headstrong and prone to get themselves into trouble. At the last family reunion of the Stoppable and Possible families, in 1935, the girls had become the best of friends almost immediately.<br>Getting yelled at by the grown-ups for managing to fall into a creek while traversing it on a fallen tree had only brought the two girls closer.

Shaun on the other hand was Ron's youngest cousin and had spent most of the previous reunions being a pest and a general nuisance. Hana had no reason to expect anything else from him at this reunion either and mischief was indeed exactly what the sixteen year old boy had his mind set on.  
>Three years ago he had had a great time teasing Hana, calling her "Hana long-legs" and similar childish things since she had obviously been self conscious about her awkward, lanky, adolescent frame.<br>It wasn't that Shaun was exactly evil but he was thoughtless, quite selfish and found it hilarious to exercise the power of words and pranks on others. In other words, he was a jerk and a brat.  
>When he had seen his cousin's Cadillac 60 Special drive up to the house, Shaun had hurried off to the buffet table in preparation for a first prank to play on Hana.<br>She was so easy to tweak that pranking her was irresistible.  
>The plan was simple. He'd come up to Hana, offering her a plate of coleslaw and then he would pretend to slip and make it seem like he would toss the coleslaw all over her dress. She would scream and jump back and he'd just hold the totally unspilled plate of food up and laugh at her for falling for the prank.<br>Actually messing her dress up would be a bad idea. Grownups, especially Ron's wife, could possibly think it bad enough to merit him a thrashing. Although well-deserved, he didn't fancy that at all.  
>Shaun had his back turned as he loaded the plate up with coleslaw when he heard Hana's voice greeting some of the others by the outdoors table.<br>He turned around swiftly, ready to put his prank into action and then stopped abruptly.

Standing before him wasn't the skinny, awkward girl from three years ago.  
>Shaun found himself looking at a fine-limbed, young woman.<br>There were curves which hadn't been there last time he'd seen her.  
>Fascinating curves that demanded his attention.<br>Almond-shaped, brown eyes watched him warily. Soft, enticing lips, faintly moist, turned downwards at the edges, displayed her disapproval of him.  
>He didn't want Hana to look at him like that nor did he want to embarrass her.<p>

His prank suddenly seemed unimportant.

"What do you want?" The suspicious tone in Hana's voice yanked Shaun back to the real world and he realized he'd been staring.  
>"I...uh..." What did he want? "<em>Say something that will impress her. Make her like you!" <em>A tiny voice in his head shouted.  
>"I got you some coleslaw." Was all he managed to come up with and he offered Hana the plate.<br>To his relief she took the plate. Her look changed from wary and hostile to puzzled.  
>"Thanks, I guess?"<br>Just was Shaun was trying to think of something friendly to say, he heard a voice behind him.  
>"Make like a bee and buzz off, Shaun. No one likes you anyway."<br>Joss had arrived at the scene.  
>She was shorter than Hana although the latter was two years her junior, but made up for her petite stature by being confident and occasionally a bit bossy which Shaun had just experienced.<br>Shaun tried to object but his words of protest faded into nothingness as Joss put an arm around Hana's shoulders and ushered her away from him.  
>Seeing the two girls walk away, Shaun somehow understood that the simple world of his childhood walked away with them.<br>He would never look at girls in general, and Hana in particular, the same way ever again and he wasn't sure how he felt about it.  
>"I just wanted you to smile." he mumbled before he turned and walked off.<p>

"Don't you think that was a bit rough on Shaun?" Hana said after a few moments.  
>"Pff! You know what he's like! It's not like his actions have cried wolf, is it?"<br>"I guess not."  
>Hana put the plate of coleslaw down on the grass.<br>"Is that a way to say hello after all this time?" She said to Joss, her voice mock-reproachful.  
>The short redhead laughed and embraced her best friend in a powerful hug. Working on the ranch had made Jocelyn a proverbial 'tough cookie' and Hana went "Oof!" as Joss squeezed the air out of her.<br>"All right! All right! Let go!" Hana laughed and Joss complied with a grin but also with faint reluctance.  
>"I really missed you, Hana."<br>"Hey, didn't you get those letters I wrote?"  
>"Sure I did but letters aren't the same as seeing you and three years is a long time."<br>Joss looked up and down Hana.  
>"Wow! You've grown tall."<br>"Don't blame me, blame dad."  
>The girls sat down next to each other. Hana looked around, making sure no one was near enough to eavesdrop.<br>"Did you read my last letter and what I was thinking about doing?" She said in a hushed voice.  
>"Uh-hunh, I did."<br>"And?"  
>"I think it's a stupid idea..."<br>"But I have to do this! I know _dad_ promised not to but I never did!"  
>Joss held up her hand, quieting Hana who was getting upset.<br>"You didn't let me finish!"  
>Joss lay back and looked up at the clouds, drifting past in the blue summer skies.<br>"I think it's a stupid idea for you to go to China without me."  
>"You'd go with me?"<br>Joss laughed.  
>"Of course, silly! You didn't think I'd let you run off on some crazy adventure without me, now did you? Besides it'll be easier for us if our folks have to be mad at the two of us at the same time."<br>Hana grabbed her friend and yanked her back up in a sitting position to give her a tight hug.  
>"Oh, Joss! Together we can do anything! Now I'm <em>sure<em> we'll find my mother!" 

**Author's Notes:**

And here, gentle reader, ends this prologue to the sequel to "Captain Stoppable's Revenge".

Stay tuned for upcoming two-fisted pulp action, thrills and adventures in Asia featuring two lovely girls and a bevy of friends and enemies.


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